Article published October 21, 2006
Local filmmaker wants to add element of entertainment to faith
Local fi lmmaker Doug Dibert’s projects include a play and a TV drama.
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THE BLADE/DAVE ZAPOTOSKY
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By DAVID YONKE
BLADE RELIGION EDITOR
Nothing against wholesome family entertainment like Little House on the Prairie, but the 1970s television series is starting to show its age, according to Doug Dibert.
“Yeah, it was a great show, but it’s time to let it go. How many times can we watch it?,” asked the Temperance, Mich., filmmaker.
Mr. Dibert, 25, founded Crossing River Entertainment in January, 2005, with the goal of creating movies and plays for Christian audiences that are “more realistic and aggressive” than most shows with a spiritual message.
“Most of Christian entertainment now is geared to people who already know Jesus Christ,” he said. “Crossing River Entertainment is different in that we create entertainment that not only appeals to the believer, but also to the person who knows nothing about Christ.”
Mr. Dibert’s latest projects include the premiere of his play, The Light of Heaven and the Darkness of Hell, running Friday through Oct. 29 at Bedford Christian Community Church, and a new made-for-TV drama, Transgression, about a man plagued by rage and searching for peace.
“It deals with a couple of situations,” he said. “One is forgiveness, and a second is not letting the devil put you in a spot you don’t want to be in,” he said.
Andrew Ingkavet, executive producer of 300 Monks, a New York-based company that composes music for film, said he was impressed by Mr. Dibert’s script and hooked the filmmaker up with an up-and-coming composer, Robert Hann.
“What I liked about this script was that it didn’t offer an easy, pre-digested answer. There is room for expansion and discussion,” Mr. Ingkavet told The Blade.
Transgression had “a thoughtful script with a powerful message of mindfulness. Being a spiritual person, I am naturally attracted to projects that are not just adding to the mind-pollution media cloud,” he said.
Mr. Dibert, a graduate of Bedford High School and the University of Toledo, became interested in drama as a high school sophomore, acting in plays staged at the Toledo Repertoire Theatre and the Collingwood Arts Center. He then signed a contract with a Cleveland-based agent.
“I was offered roles in B-movies, and the roles I was getting offered were like a worse version of American Pie,” he said. “They were films I didn’t agree with, that didn’t agree with my Christian life and my walk with the Lord. So I started getting into Christian movies and film, and man, those movies are boring!”
He initially majored in drama at UT with a minor in film, but after being disappointed with the quality of Christian movies he said he “flip-flopped” his studies to focus on filmmaking.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in film, Mr. Dibert spent some time working at local television news stations, but felt driven to start his own company. With the support of his wife, Jennifer, he took out a loan from a bank and opened Crossing River Entertainment.
“I felt the Lord really pulling me to start this Christian entertainment company. I took a leap of faith and got the money I needed,” Mr. Dibert said.
His first project was a four-part television miniseries called Finding Christ, featuring profiles of four people whose lives were changed by spiritual conversions.
“It got picked up here locally on WLMB (Channel 40) and then through some networking it got picked up nationwide,” Mr. Dibert said.
Finding Christ was shown on a number of independent U.S. Christian stations and then broadcast on two satellite networks, Faith Television Network and Sky Angel, he said. It also was distributed in Australia, New Zealand, England, and Ireland.
Mr. Dibert wrote and directed The Light of Heaven and the Darkness of Hell, which features a cast and crew of about 30 people from Bedford Christian Community Church, where he serves as drama director.
“It deals with the basic question of life: What happens when we die?” Mr. Dibert said. He specifically scheduled the premiere for next week “because people like to be scared at Halloween, so what better time to scare them with the reality of heaven and hell?”
“The Light of Heaven and the Darkness of Hell” will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Oct. 28 and 6 p.m. Oct. 29 at Bedford Christian Community Church, 8970 Jackman Rd., Temperance, Mich. Admission is free. Information on the play is available from the church, 734-850-0051, or online at www.bccag.org. Information on Mr. Dibert’s film company is available online at www.crossingriverentertainment.com.
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